


After the Letter

by Wells_Whales_DinosaurTales



Series: "Bigg"er than Life [2]
Category: She Kills Monsters
Genre: She Kills Monsters needed a fic, at 3am, i did it, i wrote a thing, mostly Chuck's perspective on things, there is kind of a brief panic attack, very emotional
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-02
Updated: 2017-04-02
Packaged: 2018-10-14 02:10:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,620
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10526685
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wells_Whales_DinosaurTales/pseuds/Wells_Whales_DinosaurTales
Summary: Chuck deals with his personal feelings regarding his best friend's death after helping her sister cope through a D&D module.





	

**Author's Note:**

> My theatre class is performing She Kills Monsters by Qui Nguyen and I am playing Chuck Biggs. I honestly needed a fanfic for this play because you only get Agnes's perspective. This time, you get to see Chuck's. Enjoy!

Chuck kicked a small stone as he walked back home from Tilly’s old house. Sure, it was Agnes’s too, but he didn’t care. He just needed to get away from there for a while. Agnes had never pushed this much before. She was bossy and had no idea what to do when they played D&D, but this time it was different. Chuck was used to portraying characters for modules, in fact, he enjoyed it. He loved using different tones and pitches to create voices for the party members. However, this was the first time he had to pretend to be his best friend.  
Chuck rubbed his face with both hands, attempting to wipe his mind of what had happened. It remained in his mind though, so he continued to kick the rock down the sidewalk as he made his way closer and closer to home. He paused. On any normal day, he would have just strolled all the way home and have been done with it. Today was not normal. He never liked going home when he felt like this. Typically, he and Tilly would go to the haunted tunnel and talk things out, hoping to catch a ghost while they got rid of the heavy emotions of the day. He hadn’t gone there since she died and he didn’t know if he was ready to. So, he kept on walking, eyes on the pavement.  
His feet carried him down the sidewalk and further onto a gravel path and then grass. It took him a moment to realize that he had passed his house, even passed Ronnie and Kelly’s house, and ended up at the bend that preceded his and Tilly’s old hang out. Chuck hesitated mentally, but his feet moved down the path and only stopped when he had reached the tunnel. He soaked in his surroundings and began to shake, which he found odd because nothing was particularly frightening about the tunnel during the daytime. Then he felt the tears streaming down his cheeks.  
“Oh.”  
He stood in solemn silence, letting the tears fall until his eyes were red and swollen. Collapsing to the ground, he stared at the entrance of the tunnel. Tilly had dared him to run through it one time. He chickened out, of course, preferring to be the “safe is better than sorry” type. Tilly, however, ran through to the other side and back without fear because that was just who she was. By the time Chuck had calmed down, the sun was beginning to set and he was just watching the tree branches shiver in the wind. Despite not wanting to come here, he was glad he had.  
“Out here by yourself?”  
Chuck startled and turned around to see Kelly smiling at him warmly, Ronnie close behind with a goofy grin of his own. He gave them his most charming smile, teeth included, and waved in response. Ronnie helped Kelly as they climbed down the hill to sit with Chuck.  
“You know, I was actually just about to leave.”  
Ronnie seemed surprised, but Kelly only continued to smile.  
“Is that so? You won’t stay a few more minutes and enjoy the sunset with us?”  
The smile Chuck had plastered onto his face remained, but the tears started to fall once more.  
“Yeah, I can probably do that.”  
They sat, Kelly on Chuck’s right and Ronnie on his left, watching the light leave the world and the darkness of the night take precedence in the sky. The streetlamps were lit and the world was quiet. At least, it was quiet until voices called out for Ronnie and Kelly to come home as dinner was ready. Chuck’s two friends stood up, Ronnie offering a hand for Chuck to take. He gladly held onto it and was yanked onto his feet.  
“Want to come over for dinner? Mom made curry!”  
Ronnie was as enthusiastic as ever. He knew that Chuck could not resist his and Kelly’s mom’s homemade curry. The tired teen nodded in response and was promptly dragged away, headed for a house full of warm laughter instead of an empty, silent one.  
~  
Ronnie and Kelly’s mom was as jovial as ever. She had preset a spot for Chuck, as though she had anticipated his arrival before Ronnie had initially invited him. They ate and laughed and Chuck had a great time. He felt like he was a part of the family. He and Tilly used to eat at Ronnie and Kelly’s all the time. That thought made Chuck stop. The room felt like it was spinning and he was finding it difficult to breathe. He squeezed the fork in his hand and small, hot tears trickled out of the corner of his eyes.  
“Hey mom, can we have some dessert?”  
“Sure! I think we still have some pie left over.”  
Chuck could hear her retreating into the kitchen, but he could not bring himself to look up. He began to shake and felt a warmth on his shoulder. He glanced to the side and Kelly was giving him a reassuring smile. Ronnie sat on the other side of the table, eyes full of concern.  
“Do you – do you want to talk about it?”  
Ronnie was careful with his words. He did not have much of a filter, but he knew when to control himself.  
“I – “  
Chuck choked back a sob. He couldn’t say anything out loud because he knew he would lose it if he did. So, he signed, to the best of his ability, what had happened. Ronnie and Kelly watched his hands move as he told them about the module, about Agnes, and about Tilly’s character. When he was done, they both nodded, acknowledging his feelings. It was at that time that Ronnie and Kelly’s mother came back into the room with an apple pie.  
“I hear that sweets are sometimes the best remedies for negative emotions.”  
Chuck’s face turned red. His friends’ mother was incredibly perceptive, more so than his own mom. While it was embarrassing to admit that he was vulnerable, he appreciated that she understood without him having to explain himself. If only it was like that at home too. Ronnie and Kelly’s mom cut the pie and distributed the slices among the three teenagers. With a smile, she picked up the tin and walked back into the kitchen.  
“Wanna play Mortal Kombat 3? I just got it this week!”  
Chuck smiled at Ronnie, but shook his head.  
“Nah, I’d rather watch.”  
“Sounds good to me!”  
The trio took their pie slices and moved into the living room where Ronnie set up the TV so that he could play. Chuck sat in his usual spot, the rightmost corner of the couch, Kelly sitting next to him.  
“If you ever feel like that again, just come and talk to us, okay? We’ll listen, you know that.”  
Chuck nodded, avoiding Kelly’s eyes.  
“I miss her too, Chuck.”  
He turned his head and could see the tears welling up in her eyes. She did not let them fall.  
“I’m sorry.”  
Chuck’s voice was barely a whisper, but Kelly heard him enough to understand. She smiled and took his hand in hers, squeezing it gently.  
“The game is ready to go! Let’s get to it!”  
The two watched as Ronnie fought against new players in new settings and the world seemed to calm down for the evening.  
~  
Monday was rough. Chuck was having a hard time focusing and he could not bring himself to see the guidance counselor and ask for help. He had heard from Steve that she was even less helpful than usual. By the time his last class rolled around, he felt like he belonged on a different planet. Banging his head on the door of his locker, he grabbed his backpack, his World Lit textbook tucked neatly inside, and headed to class. Ms. Gates was as nauseating as ever. Not that Chuck particularly disliked her class, he found it quite interesting to be exact. No, he was just rather sensitive to the smell of patchouli. Normally he could ignore it, but for some reason today was just awful.  
“Mr. Biggs, you look absolutely horrendous. Go to the nurse’s office.”  
Chuck grabbed his backpack and stumbled out of the classroom as quickly as his legs could move. Once he reached the nurse’s office he found a trashcan and lost his lunch. Taking a deep breath, he laid down on one of the two beds and closed his eyes. The nurse walked in to find him passed out on top of the sheets, his vomit-filled trashcan by the bedside. Without hesitation, she cleaned out the bin and replaced it next to Chuck. She covered him with a loose blanket and waited till the final bell sounded before waking him up.  
~  
Chuck had almost made it out the main doors when Agnes stopped him.  
“Hey, are we still on for this Friday?”  
Chuck turned to look at her, his tired eyes not quite meeting hers.  
“Yeah, sure. I’ll see you then.”  
He tried to push her away and continue walking home, where he planned to pass out on the couch and not wake up for several hours, but she held him back.  
“Listen, I’m sorry for what happened the other day. I know I’m asking for a lot. Thanks for sticking with me, even though I don’t really know what I’m doing.”  
Chuck smiled at her and nodded before walking away. He wondered how much Agnes actually knew about her sister. He wondered if she ever talked about him to her. Did she ever tell Agnes that they were best friends? That was something that he never planned to ask her.


End file.
